


Lock Screen

by Dunebugger



Category: Autoboyography - Christina Lauren
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, i'm here to dump water in the desert, mention of religion, the desert being this fandom. i'm here to help!, the epilogue's epilogue
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-17
Updated: 2021-03-17
Packaged: 2021-03-26 14:35:16
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,651
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30107484
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dunebugger/pseuds/Dunebugger
Summary: He couldn't believe he was here, right in front of his eyes. Before anything else is planned, Tanner brings Sebastian back to his dormitory so they can chat about things and hang out. (Set after the book's epilogue)
Relationships: Sebastian Brother/Tanner Scott
Kudos: 1





	Lock Screen

**Author's Note:**

> Hey y'all ^^ I finished reading this book last night, and I thought I'd write something for this fandom. Enjoy!

His introduction to Tanner’s dorm room mirrored the same experience he had back in Provo. 

The chill he got back then, looking at the bookshelves, the unabashedly hung up pride flag, the perfect mix of tidy hospitality and messy living, it all created this soothing comfort, this  _ warmth _ . It’s this same warmth he felt each time he was together with Tanner in the past, the feeling of trekking up the mountain, the feeling of his limbs beside his while they looked up at the stars, the feeling of the sun shining down on him on the beach today.

Tanner was busy moving to and fro, obviously unprepared for guests, while Sebastian laid back, taking in the shared joint of a room. It was clearly divided and rather modest — a flag of UCLA was pinned to the wall near the doorway, and there were two plain wooden beds, with one more outfitted with sheets than the other. The carpeting felt stiff and tough underneath his shoes, as he dragged his soles along the carpet. He mentally smacked himself upon the head, remembering that he just moved in last month. Of course it wouldn’t be fully furnished yet. 

“You okay?” Tanner asked as he picked up spare dirty laundry and chucked them in a laundry basket: “Do you want some water?”

_ No, but I want you.  _ “No. Thank you though.” Sebastian smiled. With a shrug of his shoulders, Tanner resumed stashing away the last of things. He tried his hardest to not stare at his stomach as Tanner’s  _ Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds _ shirt rode up on him whenever he bent over to pick up something off the floor. According to him, Ryker has classes today and even then, he wouldn’t be back for a couple of hours afterwards. This, coupled with the fact that he has nowhere to crash right now, means exactly what they both think. Soon enough they’re in the bed, and although it's the same size as the bed back in Provo, it feels smaller, more compact. It might be because dorm rooms are the size of New York apartments — miniscule — but it may just be because of their stacked bodies. 

“You know, this room isn’t that half-bad,” Sebastian remarked, who finally spoke up after being wordless since he arrived inside the dormitory. He adjusted the pillow behind him, as he sat straighter against the headrest. His phone was wedged underneath his leg. 

“It’s not bad at all now that you’re here,” Tanner teased, love brimming through each word, even if it was a simple flirtation. “I still can’t believe you’re here. Am I dreaming?” he pushed his head back, tucked underneath the shorter one’s chin. He reached behind to grab the other’s hand, and pulled it in close and onto his stomach. Tanner took this opportunity to get closer until he was near-lying on top of the other’s torso.

“Tanner, I swear you’re not. I can’t believe this either,” Sebastian soothed, letting his chin rest on the other’s head. 

“How did you even…” 

And it was like their minds were connected: “Autumn. Always ask the best friend, you know?” he cheekily said. “Plus, I may or may not have been stalking your Insta. ‘Tannbannthankyouman’?”

“I swear, it’s just something I wrote when I was in Junior high!” Tanner blushed, flustered, “I had used up all of my chances to change it, so now I’m stuck with it forever.”

“It’s not the  _ worst _ name ever. It suits you.” Sebastian provided an easy smile, something that he thought seemed so much more… _ easy _ here. He recalls the flight over, still antsy about finding the one guy he met two months ago in a crowded bookshop, and thinking, how,  _ how _ in the world would I have withstood two years away from him? It was a feat nearly impossible to do over the book tour, and during those nights with the manuscript clutched in his chest, there was no other substitute or antidote for this pain than just simply coming to see him. They laid there for a while, basking in the serenity, looking at the cream colored walls before Tanner spoke up:

“Hey, wait, so this means you have an Insta, right?” Tanner asked, curiosity behind his eyes. 

“Well,  _ yeah _ , I guess I do. I have a couple of accounts, but they’re mostly used by my publicist. I made my own recently.”

There were a couple beats taken, and that was when Sebastian perked up and understood that Tanner was waiting for him to talk. The other giggled at his naiveness, and a rosy blush splattered on Sebastian’s face. “O-oh, right! So, yeah. I made my own account using the email we used to use to talk. It’s, uhm, I called it…” he trailed off, looking the other direction.

“You called it what, Sebastian?” Tanner pushed, a smile already let loose.

“Mountain Man.” 

“Wait,  _ what _ ?” Tanner cried out, laughing jovially and curling his head into Sebastian’s chest, who laughed alongside.

“I thought about it on the fly! I don’t want someone to know that it’s  _ me _ !”

“No, no, I’m not laughing because of the name, I think it’s cute.” Tanner replied, already grabbing his phone out from between the covers, searching up his name in the app. “It’s perfect.”

It took a second for him to type the name into the search engine.

“Is there an underscore?”

“Yeah.”

“Are there numbers too?”

“Also yeah. Sorry, I should’ve told you that too.”

“No worries.” 

And right there, illuminating his face, was Sebastian’s account,  _ ‘Mountain_Man404’ _ . The profile picture was small on his screen, but he could see that it was a mountain landscape, what looked like the same one that overlooked the big Y back in Provo. It was a locked account, but he pressed follow anyways.

“My turn,” Sebastian offered, and after a minute, Tanner had access to his account, which was unsurprisingly bare. One follower and two posts, one of an airplane window, and the other of his sneakers on airport carpeting. No captions, but liked by one person each, ‘AuddynotAuddy’. 

_ Obviously _ . 

“I’m happy I was able to find your account,” Sebastian admitted, “Not in a creepy way, of course — it’s just — I missed seeing you every week, and, uh, all I had was the manuscript. I’m happy to see that college life has been going well for you, I mean,  _ I think it is _ , I—” 

“ _ Sebastian _ , Sebastian, don’t worry, you’re alright. I’ve missed you too.” His uncharacteristic fidgeting and bashfulness brought a smile to Tanner’s face. He loved to see it, the genuine side he had.

“I kept looking back at the emails we sent. I hate that I wasn’t able to save any voice messages after my dad took away my phone. No photos, either. I still have to update my phone.” 

“Wait, did we never actually take a picture together?”

“ …no.”

“Well, do you wanna take a picture  _ now _ ?” Tanner asked, and to this, he turned back to see Sebastian with his signature blush. “We don’t have to, you know.”

“No! No yeah, I’d be happy to,” Sebastian said, attempting to rein in his emotions. The two settled against each other as he raised his phone and aimed it toward them. With a  _ click _ , they took a picture. 

The picture was perfect in its imperfections. Tanner provided a toothy grin, the same one he fell in love with, and he himself smiled, but not the one he put on with effort.

* * *

The sun is threatening to come down any moment now. Yellow light filtered through the dorm windows has changed into a hazy blue, draped over their covered bodies. trailing from the window, through the dinky venetian blinders, thin slivers of lines brought color to the white duvet sheet. The dark ambience was complimented with the chunky, old-school TV that glowed light. The bed swooped down slightly from the weight of the two of them.

Tanner’s body laid flush against Sebastian’s, and as they lay languidly, encased in an impenetrable aura, Sebastian’s heart  _ blooms _ in the same feelings he’s been experiencing since he’s arrived in Los Angeles. While Pretty Little Liars plays in the background, he isn’t afraid to start chatting: “Hey, I’m glad that you’re doing okay. As if I haven’t expressed that enough already.”

Tanner shifted his head at this, making sure to lock eyes with the other so he knows he’s not mincing words: “Seb, I’m happy for you and for everything you’ve endured — in no way is any of it warranted, but I’m happy you are here.” 

“ _ I’m _ happy I’m here. It’s surprising to me as well,” Sebastian spoke, not afraid of being honest in this private space. “I still can’t believe…it was two months ago, you know? This  _ feels _ surreal.” 

Tanner didn’t need him to say anything more, and instead opted to kiss him a single time, and for the rest of the night, the worries for the future, what’d he do, what’ll become of him, permissibly slip away from his grasp like grains of sand, like an eraser mark swiping his troubles away. 

It was deep in the night when he reached for the remote control. Sebastian switched off the television, and set it down gently, not wanting to disturb the body curled up beside him. Tanner’s taller figure was harder to not disturb, and when all was clear, he gave a gentle sigh. He checked his phone, if there were any notifications — none, currently. He fiddled with the phone a little bit longer, and afterwards, he drifted off to sleep, wrapping an arm around the warm body, pulling him closer and succumbing to the warmth. The jetlag hit him in full force as he fell into a deep sleep. 

A notification to update his phone lit up his screen, and set as his lock screen, shining bright in the room, was a picture of the two of them, smiling.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! What did you think of it? Did you like it? I appreciate you for reading all the way through!! ^^


End file.
